Archive for the ‘Aston Martin V-8 Vantage’ tag

Starting this month and lasting throughout the year, Aston Martin will celebrate its centenary with a number of U.K.- and international-based events that highlight both its current lineup and its iconic past models.

Kicking off the celebration on January 15, the marque’s official birth date, will be the unveiling of a commemorative plaque, and a photo shoot that brings the A3 – the oldest surviving Aston Martin – together with the new flagship Vanquish at the firm’s original home, Henniker Mews in Chelsea.

These two cars will be present during the Aston Martin Heritage Trust Walter Hayes Memorial Lecture, when actor Sir John Standing will play Lionel Martin, discussing the founding of the firm in Martin’s own words.

Lionel Martin, Aston Martin founder and namesake

Aston Martin will hold a Centenary Week from July 15-21, 2013; this period will include open house activities at Aston Martin’s current Gaydon headquarters including factory events and driving tours, as well as a 1,000-guest ‘birthday party’ on Saturday, July 20. Topping this is the Centenary Concours in central London on Sunday the 21st: co-hosted with the Aston Martin Heritage Trust and the Aston Martin Owners Club, 100 Astons will take part in this concours display, and the up to 1,000 Aston Martins also expected to attend will form the largest gathering in the history of the marque.

There will be a number of driving tours in the U.K., Europe and in the United States, which will coincide with this Centenary Week. One U.K. tour features a James Bond-themed route around England and Wales that takes in many “007″ filming locations, while another tours Scotland; there will be a rally that visits six European countries in as many days. The U.S. driving tour takes place in August as part of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance week.

For those unfamiliar with the marque, Aston Martin released a short summary of their history:

On 15 January 1913, Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford founded a new automotive venture. They called their company Bamford & Martin, which later became Aston Martin, acknowledging Robert Bamford’s success at the Aston Clinton Hillclimb in Buckinghamshire, where he had successfully raced their very first cars. Bamford and Martin began their business in Chelsea’s Henniker Mews in London, becoming well known as providers of sporting machines to enthusiastic racers and discerning enthusiasts.

A second celebration sees Aston Martin mark its first decade at Gaydon, in Warwickshire, moving in to its purpose-built premises on 3 January 2003. Since that date Aston Martin, overseen by CEO Dr Ulrich Bez, has produced 45,000 cars to huge critical and commercial acclaim. The original DB9 and Vantage were joined by the Rapide, DBS, Virage and now the timeless new DB9 and ultimate GT, the Vanquish – Aston Martin’s latest flagship sports car.

Aston Martin is, too, no longer focused on the domestic market but an international player, exporting 75 percent of its annual production around the world to 146 dealerships in 41 countries.

It’s not every car that can make a color like Karussell Orange work, but then again, Aston Martin’s sublime V-8 Vantage has never been just any old car. The automaker has unveiled its limited-production V-8 Vantage N400 as a tribute to their performance at the NÃ¼rburgring 24 Hours race, where the production-based V-8 Vantage N24 competed in traditional yellow and green livery.

Available as both a coupe and a roadster, the N400 can also be had in subtler Bergwerk Black and Lightning Silver, and it features perforated black leather seats, specially turned aluminum interior trim and a numbered sill plaque. Proving that the N400 has the go to accompany its show, the 4.3-liter V-8 gets a 20hp bump to an even 400, and the standard six-speed or optional Sportshift automated manual gearboxes will be available.

Only 240 will be made in each body style, so visit your friendly Aston dealer today.

(This post originally appeared in the November 22, 2007, issue of the Hemmings eWeekly Newsletter.)